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January 7, 2008, HUDSON, WI – The St. Croix Valley Community Foundation announced today the result of their presidential search: Jane Hetland Stevenson has been named president of the Foundation, succeeding David H. Griffith.
Stevenson brings a long and distinguished national career in community building and foundation leadership, most recently as vice president for Philanthropic Services at a Phoenix-based consulting firm. Earlier in her career, she served as an associate director of The Aspen Institute in Washington D.C., and as executive director of the Arizona Community Action Association.
Leadership of the Hudson-based St. Croix Valley Community Foundation brings her back to a region she has served before: from 1989 through 1994, she was an associate professor in the Department of Applied Economics at the University of Minnesota; from 1979 to 1989, she worked for the State of Minnesota: first as a senior planning officer in the Minnesota State Planning Agency, and then as executive director of the Governor’s Rural Development Council.
“I couldn’t be more thrilled to be returning to the Midwest, and to the St. Croix Valley in particular,” Stevenson said. “I have fairly deep roots here through family and friends, and am honored and excited to have the opportunity to join the Foundation. It has a great history of both professional and volunteer leadership – and seems to me poised to grow dramatically both in assets and in its relevance to the people of the St. Croix Valley.”
The St. Croix Valley Community Foundation was established in 1995 by a group of Valley residents to provide an effective means for people who care about this unique region to be part of shaping its future. As of 2007, the Foundation has assets of approximately $15 million, and is active in grantmaking in five counties that border the St. Croix River – three in Wisconsin and two in Minnesota.
“As the Foundation recently completed a new strategic plan, we knew that finding the right president to succeed David Griffith as he retired was a critical success factor,” said Gretchen Stein, board chair. “In Jane Hetland Stevenson, we are confident that we have just the right leader – not only for our Foundation, but also a vital new civic voice in the Valley.”
Griffith served as president of the Foundation for seven years, and announced his intention to retire early in 2007. A presidential search committee, led by retired Andersen Windows executive Mike Johnson, began its work in August of 2007.
“It was gratifying to realize just what an attractive opportunity this was for many very impressive professionals,” Mike Johnson said. “We had literally dozens of very qualified applicants – both from the region and from across the country. The selection process helped us really focus on the needs of the Valley, and the corresponding needs of our Foundation. We are confident we found the right choice in Jane Hetland Stevenson: knowledge of the region; great experience in community foundations; real enthusiasm for both suburban and rural community-building strategies. So we are thrilled that she said ‘yes’ to our offer!”
Stevenson joins the Foundation effective January 8.
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